


To the groom!

by Smoltinypumpkinchild



Series: Well *I* heard you're writing fluffy oneshots on the side, Burr... [1]
Category: Hamilton - Miranda
Genre: Asexual John Laurens, Cute, Domestic, Fluffy, I have no regrets, M/M, Sickening, Tumblr Prompts, married, non-binary Lafayette, oneshots
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-24
Updated: 2016-07-28
Packaged: 2018-07-26 13:08:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,834
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7575166
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Smoltinypumpkinchild/pseuds/Smoltinypumpkinchild
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Fluffy married Hamburr for your soul :D<br/>The Rev Set met Ham *after* he got married, and for some reason have never cottoned on to that fact... they decide he's been single long enough, and set to work to find him a date (in secret of course, because plot)</p><p>Please comment with thoughts, suggestions and prompts- comments give me LIFE! Enjoy!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Part one

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> First Hamilton one-shot! Inspired by (coughcoughdirectlycopiedfrom) THIS tumblr post http://alexanburrsir.tumblr.com/post/144505629353/aaron-and-alex-au-where-they-are-actually-already

The weak sunlight filtered through the blinds, and Alexander sat with his head on the table, still half asleep, as he listened to the sizzling of the oil in the pan and his husband’s soft humming. As he stifled a yawn behind his hand, a soft chuckle from the stove turned it into a smile- also hidden. He feigned offense instead, muttering _‘shut up’_ under his breath and burying his face into the crook of his arm. The man only laughed again- that warm, easy sound he’d become so used to over the years, and that he used to have to work so hard for. _Not now,_ he thought.

“Perhaps, if you went to sleep at a reasonable time, you wouldn’t be so tired.” came the voice. Alex grunted, his reply muffled.

“This time was _your_ fault. You had to go and wear that damn grey tank top, you _know_ what your arms do to me. And you were up just as late- by rights, you should be as tired as I am.” He raised his head, pouting, to see his husband turn with a fondly sceptical expression on his face.

“Well, _I_ wasn’t up until 4am every night this week writing, so you’ve only yourself to blame, Allie.” he said, shaking his head and cuffing Alex’s nose lightly with a finger. Alex only scowled.

“Hey- it’s an important essay and I had to get it done and-”

“- _and_ there are thirty other students in that class who got everything they needed to say down in about three pages. You’re the one who had to go and write thirty.” He turned back to the stove, picking up the pan and tipping the contents onto a plate. Alex huffed and blew the hair out of his eyes.

“Ugh, I hate it when you’re right.”

“Honestly, Alexander, I thought you’d have gotten used to it by now.” There was a teasing twinkle in the man’s dark eyes as he came back to the table and put the plate of pancakes down in front of Alex. Alex felt his expression soften- they really did smell delicious. He sighed and offered his husband a small smile.

“You know, Aaron, you really didn’t have to-”

“I know I didn’t _have_ to babe, I _wanted_ to.” Aaron shook his head again, pushing the plate towards him. “Big debate today, get your strength up, yada yada.”

“Well, thanks.”

“You are most welcome. Now _I_ -” He kissed the side of Alex’s head and went to grab his jacket from the hook by the door. “-have to go, or I’ll be late for my lecture.” He flashed Alexander a million-dollar-smile, one only Alex ever got to see, and pulled the jacket over his shoulders. “Eat up, kick Jefferson’s ass, and I’ll meet you for dinner, yeah?”

“Bye, babe. Hey- wait!” He stood as Aaron made to leave, and the man turned in surprise.

“What-” He made a surprised sort of squeak as Alex gripped the front of his shirt and pressed his lips to his. For a second, he was tensed in surprise, but he relaxed as Alex pulled him closer. Alex felt him grin against his lips. As they drew apart, Alex saw that Aaron had his eyes closed, and felt a swell of something warm in his chest.

“I love you.” he murmured. Aaron opened his eyes and smiled, his eyes crinkling up.

“I love you too.” He pecked his lips once more, then backed out of the apartment, still smiling.

“See you later, Alexander.”

“Bye” He blew Aaron another kiss as he left, watching as he rolled his eyes and waved, then slowly shut the door and returned to his pancakes. A warm, fuzzy sort of feeling stayed in his stomach- not the jitters he used to get when Aaron kissed him or held his hand- but a calm softness that he had come to recognise as contentment.

What had he done to deserve someone like Aaron? People had warned them against marrying, had said they were rushing into things; they had only been eighteen and nineteen when Aaron had proposed, and they’d got married less than a year later- but they had been together for years before that. They had known each other since middle school, and started dating while both very young, and neither could imagine being with anyone else. Despite all the warnings, they’d gone through with the marriage, and never regretted it for a second. Now, three years later and both in college, they were going as strong as ever, and Alex knew he was one of the luckiest people on earth for it all to have gone so well. Sure, they bickered and teased like nobody’s business, especially in public, but nothing ever got serious- not any more. They had learned early on that talking to each other when anything was wrong was always the best course of action- and though Alex wouldn’t swallow his pride for many, he would do it for Aaron. He knew his husband was the same.

As he sat, finishing his pancakes, he ran his thumb over the tattoo on his ring finger- the little black mark that he’d got for Aaron- one you’d probably miss if you weren’t looking. It was an ellipsis- three inky dots running horizontally along the inside. They’d opted for the tattoos rather than rings, partly because they couldn’t really afford them, and partly because neither were big jewellery wearers- and Alex would probably have lost his by now anyway. Changing a surname, too, had seemed like an awful lot of hassle at the time, so they’d decided just to keep their own- neither _belonged_ to the other, after all, and the fight over whose they kept would have brought the house down- not in a good way. They had their tattoos, then, to remind them that they had made that promise. Alex had chosen an ellipsis for his because of the quiet comfort he found in Aaron- a welcome pause, he had said, in the midst of his hectic life. He’d told Aaron in his vows that he was the only person he could ever be quiet with. It was also a teasing reference to Aaron’s “talk less, smile more” motto (he’d thought a smiley face might be a little too much). Aaron himself had speech-marks. It fitted them very well.

When he had finished, he quickly got dressed, pulling a t-shirt and hoodie over his head- which messed up his hair- and finished the last swigs of his coffee before he left. He wasn’t worried about the debate- sure, he was determined to grind Jefferson into the mud, but he knew he’d have Aaron to complain to _or_ celebrate with, whichever way it went- not to mention his other friends. _Speaking of…_

He pulled out his phone and sent a quick text to his best friend, John Laurens, and another to _his_ roommate, Lafayette.

 

**_To:_ Turtle-fucker**

eyyo u ready 4 debate 2day? Mac-fucker needs some ass-kicking pronto

 

**_To:_ Baguette-fucker**

Yo remember booze 4 l8r? Will txt later to tell u if its sorrow-drowning or a partayy

 

He then tucked his phone into his pocket, slung his bag over his shoulder and headed out, ready for whatever Jefferson had to throw at him. It was show-time.

 

***

 

“You know what?” John said through a mouthful of cereal, sitting at the kitchen table with a surprisingly authoritative expression, considering he was wearing a turtle onesie. His roommate, Hercules, didn’t look up from his sewing.

“What?”

“Aww, come on- don’t be like that. It’s an actual good idea, ok?” Herc raised his head, arching one eyebrow.

“Sure, John, whatever you say.” John flipped him off.

“Just trust me, alright?” he pleaded. At that, the man let out a short laugh.

“Trust you? Like we trusted you with that-” John groaned loudly, rolling his eyes.

“For the _last time_ , how was I supposed to know it would blow up?”

“Oh, be quiet John. You are disturbing my beauty sleep.” came another voice from the couch. Their other roommate, Lafayette, was sprawled out on it, mostly hidden in their own hair.

“Like you need it.” John scoffed.

“Touché.”

“So, what I was _going_ to say-” John tried again, glaring pointedly at Hercules, “-was that we should find Alex a date.”

His two friends blinked at him in surprise.

“Why?”

“Because he’s lonely and single, _duh_.”

“He’s been single the whole time we’ve known him, dude” Herc said, apparently still not convinced. “Why’d you suddenly notice?”

“I’d just been thinking.” John shrugged. “You know, he _never_ picks anyone up when we go clubbing-”

“Neither do you, mon ami,” Laf pointed out.

“Well, _duh,_ of course I don’t. Ace, Laf- remember? But Alex is bisexual, right? So I figure it’s cause he wants a committed relationship, not just a one-night-stand. Which is cool, I respect that, but he, like, _never_ leaves his apartment if it’s not to go out with us, or hang out with his roommate, so he’s never going to find someone on his own. I just thought it’d be nice to help him out.” There was silence for a few seconds, his roommates seeming to think over what he’d said.

“You may have a point, mon ami.” Lafayette said slowly.

“Yeah.” Herc admitted. “It’d be cool to see Alex with someone. He’s always stuffed up in his apartment, you know? Bet he’s sick and tired of Burr by now.”

“ _Exactly._ ” John said, a note of triumph in his voice. He’d known he’d win them over. “Friday, when we go out, let’s try and get him talking with someone.” Herc held up a hand, still holding his needle.

“Hey, hold up. Do you think Alex will be OK with it? You know he’s a fucking peacock when it comes to pride.”

“That’s why we don’t _tell_ him it’s a set-up, idiot.” John told him slowly, as if explaining something to a small child. Hercules mimed slitting his throat with the sewing needle. John ignored this. “We just introduce them, and see where things go. We’ll tell _them_ that he’s single, obviously, so they make the right impression.”

From across the room, Lafayette shrugged.

“It sounds good to me, John.” they said, before frowning and glancing at their watch. “But hadn’t you better get going, mon ami? You have that debate with Thomas, do you not?”  
“Oh yeah, you’re right! What time is it?”

“About 10:30?”

“Shit, I’m late.” John scrambled out of his chair and into his room, and the other two could hear him frantically pulling on clothes before he barrelled back through, grabbing his bag and a cookie from the sideboard, before waving to them both as he backed out. They waved, exasperated, and watched him leave, still mulling over what he’d said about their friend.

On his way, as he checked his phone, he saw a text from Alex that he’d missed.

 

**_From:_ AdotBitch**

eyyo u ready 4 debate 2day? Mac-fucker needs some ass-kicking pronto

 

Grinning to himself, he walked a little faster to catch his friend at debate. He was pretty proud of himself for his 3am epiphany- and he’d had a lot of time to think it over while Lafayette and Hercules slept. Alex would _finally_ have a date, and he’d be able to thank John for it, to boot. What could go wrong?

 

***

 

Alex made his way to the corner café with a beaming smile on his face. He and John had _thrashed_ Jefferson- the look on his face when they’d finished was one Alex would be able to remember for a long, long time. If he’d had a microphone, he definitely would have dropped it. The rest of his day had been spent in glorious triumph, winking at Thomas whenever he passed, and deciding exactly what to say to Aaron about it. He always gave him a blow-by-blow account, no matter the outcome, and he had already started basically scripting it out in his head. A few blocks down, a little ‘ _ping’_ from his pocket made him pull out his phone, and smile still wider at the message showing there. He quickly replied.

 

**_From:_ Rent-payer**

Waiting at the café- I ordered for you. ETA?

 

**_To:_ Rent-payer**

5 mins. Thx 4 ordering- unless it’s mac n cheese. Ive butchered enough of that 4 1 day xx

 

Tucking away his phone, he continued, picking up his pace as he felt a few spots of freezing rain on the back of his head. Damn the New York weather.

When he got there, he saw Aaron look up from the book he was reading to see who was at the door. His face split into a smile as he saw Alex, and he tucked his book into his bag quickly.

“Alexander, hey. I take it debate went well?”

“Did it _ever_.” Alex sighed, slumping down in the seat opposite him and dumping his bag at his feet. Aaron reached over and took his hand across the table, surprising Alex a little- Aaron wasn’t one for PDA. At _all._ When they had first started dating, he had tried to pester him into it, being the cuddler that he was: trying to hold his hand or kiss him in public, but Aaron had always shied away. After he’d properly talked to him about it, and found out just how uncomfortable it made him, he’d felt awful. But hey, they were past that. And it meant Alex could claim right to double the affection when they were alone… still, the gentle cycle that Aaron was now rubbing into the back of his hand was certainly something he could get used to…

“Alexander?” Aaron said, snapping him out of his thoughts.

“Hmm? Oh, sorry. Just zoned out, you know.” There was a short pause, which Aaron broke with a chuckle.

“Well, get on with it. I know you’re dying to re-live the glory.” Alex couldn’t suppress his beaming smile at that. He shifted in his seat, letting go of Aaron’s hand and planting both of his flat on the table.

“Right, so it was on the ethics of prostitution, right?” he said, watching Aaron settle in his chair, listening intently. “Obviously, John and I were _for_ the rights of sex-workers, and Jefferson was against, and since he won last time- according to _some_ people, anyway, he got to start- and, man, you won’t _believe_ what he opened with- he actually had the fucking _nerve_ to suggest that-”

 -

Aaron smiled fondly at his husband as he rambled on- practically quoting every point that had been made word for word- letting the chatter wash over him. He had used to find that _so annoying_ : Alexander could talk for hours if you didn’t stop him, and they had argued about it no end when they were younger. It had infuriated him, the endless babbling and complaining, but that was just Alex. And he loved Alex, so he had come to love his chatter too. He grew most worried, now, when his husband _wasn’t_ talking- that generally meant something was up.

They still argued about it, of course, but there was no malice behind the words now, no matter how strong a front either of them put up. Their most serious bickering ended in someone pouting and the other paying for drinks that night. Nothing more.

He let himself get lost in watching the man before him. He gestured so _wildly_ , his face completely animated, looking up now and then to check that he was still listening. _How could I not?_ he thought to himself _You don’t really leave anyone in the vicinity with much of a choice._ Alex was so absorbed in his recount that he didn’t even notice when their food arrived several minutes later. When he _did_ , he picked up a fork and shovelled in mouthfuls between his words, never breaking stride- years of practice had made him an expert at this kind of multitasking. Aaron doubted he even knew what he was eating. He worked slowly through his own casserole as he listened, nodding and murmuring assent when Alex paused for breath, which wasn’t often, and gave a smile and a tip to the waiter when they returned to collect the plates.

“-and he just _walked out!_ ” Alex finished triumphantly, slamming his cutlery down onto the empty plate with a loud clash. Aaron grimaced and muttered an apology to the waiter, who only rolled their eyes and took the plate from under Alexander’s nose. “I fucking _decked_ him!”

“You sure did, babe.” Aaron assured his husband, stifling the laugh that was building in his throat. After all these years, Alexander was still adorable. A grown man shouldn’t be _allowed_ to be that precious, he thought, watching the beaming face across from him, and yet here he was…

“So-” Alex said, a little out of breath from his ranting, “-how was _your_ day.” Aaron chuckled.

“Nowhere near as nice as yours.” Alexander pouted at that, making the disgruntled puppy face that meant he wasn’t pleased with the answer.

“Oh, come on.” Aaron shook his head.

“I just took notes at lectures all day- nothing exciting. Oh, and speaking of things that aren’t exciting…” He pulled a large booklet out of his bag, ignoring Alexander’s groan, and put it on the table between them. “We need a new carpet for the sitting room- ours is falling to pieces. What colour do you want?”

“ _Aaron…_ ”

“Alex, we both know you’ll throw a hissy fit if I choose it without you.” Alex folded his arms and pouted again, but pulled the thing towards him. He flipped through the booklet, peering at the different colours.

“I can’t even tell the difference between half of them!” he complained, frowning at the pages as if they had offended him.  
“Just give me a rough idea, I’ll refine the shade of it.”

Alexander furrowed his brow, looking from shade to shade in confusion.

“What the- ‘Baby’s breath’? That’s not a colour- ‘Light sand’- it’s fucking beige! Just say beige!” He turned the pages faster, and Aaron put a hand on his arm.

“You don’t even have to use the booklet, babe, just give me a rough idea. How about blue?” Alex shook his head.

“Blue is depressing. If I learned one thing from that literature class, it’s that blue means sadness- and I do not want a sad carpet in our living room.”

“Alright then, how about purple?”

“Oh, _hell no,_ that’s like, Jefferson’s signature colour! If you think I’m going to walk into our living room and immediately think of Jefferson, you’ve got another thing coming!”

Aaron sighed. This was going to take a while.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yo! Hope you enjoyed this first chapter, I'll be back as soon as I can with an update! Love you!


	2. Part two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Part two!  
> John tries to get some information from Burr, and the squad take Alex to a club to meet Lafayette's colleague Maria. Alex is an oblivious child.

Lafayette met John at the gates after class, complaining about not being able to stand Hercules for a second longer, and they leaned against the wall outside and talked. Laf listened gleefully to his recount of the debate with Jefferson, sniggering appreciatively as he told them how they’d thrashed him. They wanted every last detail, having something of a personal vendetta with Jefferson, and John was happy to oblige. When he’d finished, they were in stitches, and had to take a minute to calm themselves while John watched in amusement. They spluttered and swallowed, trying to steady themselves, before finally managing to stop.

“S-So.” they said, straightening. “We are meeting Alex for a celebration?” John beamed.

“Hell yes! You got the booze?”

“You doubt me, Monsieur Laurens? It is in my car, of course.” They pulled out their phone, ready to dial up a number. “I should contact him, no?”

“Nah, no need. He’s got his location on- he’s just down the road. We can get Herc, then go pick him up.” Lafayette nodded, replacing their phone.

“Alright, then let us be off. Hercules is at the fabric store.” they shuddered and grimaced. “It may take a while to get him out…”

On their way, John brought up the issue of Alex again, and was met with an eye-roll from his friend.

“Hey, come on- work with me here. We’ve got to start brainstorming; do we know _anyone_ who’s single, into guys, and at least _roughly_ our age?”

“Roughly being…”

“Washington is not an option.” John said firmly. Laf sighed.

“I don’t know, mon ami. We do not even know what his ‘type’ is.” But John had been ready for that.

“Oh, I know how to find out.” he said idly, winking.

“And what on earth is _that_ supposed to-”

“You’ll see.”

“I hate you.”

When they had reached the fabric shop, spent twenty odd minutes trying to persuade Herc that he couldn’t afford anything, they continued on their way to the café.

“Ok-” Herc was saying. “My cousin James is single, and he’s gay. Maybe he and Alex would hit it off?”

“Maybe… but isn’t that kind of creepy? You know, Alex is basically our family already, setting him up with a relative feels a bit weird…”

“We have barely known Alexander for a year, John” Laf reminded him. “We can’t quite call him family yet.”

“Oh, come on, the only person he spends time with more than _us_ is his roommate. And they, you know, _live together._ ”

“Hey, speaking of, is he here with him now?” Herc gestured to the shop they were approaching.

“I think so.” John replied. “They usually go out for a meal or a drink after class- especially after a debate: I think Alex likes to give him a relay of what went down.” Herc whistled softly.

“Burr must be a good listener. I can barely sit through _your_ chatter, let alone Alexander’s”

“He probably just tunes it out.”

John chuckled as he pushed open the door, and Herc and Laf followed him in. Their eyes quickly found Alexander- and Burr, as did their ears. The pair were bickering loudly, Burr holding a thick booklet in front of him, pointing to something on the page. He seemed utterly exasperated, while Alexander was defiant and resentful, jabbing his finger at his roommates chest, and they were attracting a few stares.

“Alexander _please,_ just choose a colour! It’s not difficult!”

“Who says I have to choose? What does it matter anyway?” Alex replied indignantly- and oh, his friends recognised that tone. There was no getting him out of the spiral now, he was too far gone- arms folded and a childish pout on his face. Poor Burr.

“You are _hopeless_ , Alexander-” Burr was saying. “All you’ve done is say no to all my suggestions!”  
“I have not!”

“ _Alex!_ ”

John exchanged a look with Lafayette. Someone had to rescue Burr, pronto- the poor man was fighting a losing battle. _No-one_ could reason with Alex when he got like that- you just had to let him blow himself out or leave. They started to make their way over. Burr was still trying to calm Alex down, shouting back and forth, and then-

“Fine.” he said, slapping the book shut. He sat back in his chair, folding his arms and holding Alex’s gaze with an expression that was somehow… cocky. Knowing. A smile came into his eyes that John had never seen before, his eyebrows raised, lip caught between his teeth.

“I guess I’ll just head off then, and… pick by myself. It can be a _surprise._ ”

There were a few seconds of silence. Then, to John’s utter shock, Alexander leaned across the table and grabbed the booklet from him, muttering about _dirty tactics_.

It was then that Aaron looked up and, smiling as he saw John and the others, waved them over to the table.

“Come to pick Alex up?”

“Uh- yeah. But if you’re busy-”

“No, this’ll give him an incentive to hurry up.”

He poked Alex’s head with a forefinger, making him grumble and look through the booklet faster.

“Come on, Alexander- your friends are waiting.”

“Ok, _fine, fine!_ ” Alex burst out, pushing the booklet back towards him. “Get, like, pale green. Like, yellowy- not turquoise.”

“Not turquoise.” Burr repeated. He took the booklet and put it into his bag, before standing up from the table. “Well, I had better be off- I need to get to the store before it closes.” Alexander stood too, then began fumbling in his pocket for his wallet.

“Wait, don’t we need to pay?”

“I already did.” said Burr, rolling his eyes.

“Oh.” Alex smiled. “Always the gentleman.” The group started to head for the door, but John was determined to act on the idea he’d had earlier.

“Burr, could you spare a minute?” Burr looked around at him in mild surprise.

“Yes, sure. Why?”

“I’ll tell you in a second. Laf, you guys start walking without me- I’ll catch up.” He gave Lafayette and Herc a meaningful look, and they nodded, escorting Alex out. As Alex left, he called out to Burr.

“See you at home!”

“Bye, have a good time.” Burr replied, raising a hand as Alex and the other two exited. When they had gone, John turned to Burr.

“Okay- first of all, how did you get him to do that?”

“Do what?”

“Stop arguing! He’s too stubborn to give in to anyone.” At that, Burr smiled ruefully.

“Well, I’ve had a lot of practice. The last time he couldn’t decide on something, and I offered him a _surprise_ , it wasn’t one he liked.”

“I’m… not going to ask. Now- ” He leaned against the table, deciding how to word his question. Burr watched him curiously, a small crease above his brow.

“Yes?”

“What would you say… Alexander likes in a person? You know- best traits and stuff.” Burr seemed to think for a moment, then replied, slowly.

“Well… intelligence, certainly. They have to be able to keep up with him in a conversation- and in an argument. If they can’t hold their own, he won't have as much respect. Wit, a… a healthy sense of humour, I suppose. Ambition, since he has so much of his own, and drive- motivation. Why do you- ?”

“What about physical appearance? What’s he into, you know?” he pressed on, not acknowledging the man’s unfinished question. For a few moments, he had considered telling Burr his plan, but then… he and Alex were thick as thieves, spent every spare moment together, and while he didn’t _mistrust_ Burr… He didn’t know him all that well, and couldn’t be sure he wouldn’t tell Alex. Burr frowned, and John couldn’t help notice that he looked somewhat uncomfortable.

“Uh… I know he likes…height, at least in men? I don’t know- pretty smiles? In my experience, physical appearance doesn’t matter that much to him- what the person’s actually _like_ is a lot more important. But-” he furrowed his brow further still, “Why are you asking _me,_ not him?”

“Well… I thought it might seem kind of weird to ask him. Kind of creepy; intrusive, you know? And I figured, since you’re, like, his best friend, you’d probably know.” The look on Burr’s face was still more confused, and a little strained, but John brushed it off. He figured he’d got enough out of him, and, besides, he didn’t want the others getting too far ahead of him.

“Thanks, Burr.” he said, smiling at the man as he left. Burr watched him go, still frowning. John supposed it _was_ kind of creepy, talking to your friend’s best friend to find out what he’s into- but hey, needs must.

As he speed-walked to catch up to the group (he sure as _hell_ wasn’t going to run) he felt the conversation had gone considerably well. He now had a bank of traits to check for in potential dates, though not many that he couldn’t have guessed at himself, and he hadn’t weirded Burr out _too_ much. And hey, at least Alexander still didn’t know. He caught sight of Lafayette’s hair bobbing a little way above the crowd- why did they even _need_ to wear heels when they were six foot already?- and followed that until he caught up. He nodded to Herc to show that his mission had been a success, before remembering that he hadn’t told Herc what it was. Oh well, he could fill them in later. And _then,_ it would soon be time to put their plan into action.

***

That night, Aaron lay on the edge of the bed, nose in a book, while the rain fell outside. It was a warm night, despite the weather, so he was shirtless, loving the feel of the cool sheets on his back. He’d spent the whole evening dragging furniture from room to room, pulling up the carpet and setting the new one down, so his arms and back were sore. He’d showered, so at least he wasn’t dripping in sweat any more, and the new carpet was down- so he counted it as a success, despite the mound of broken glass that was now piled outside. It was properly night now, and he’d received a text from John- almost unintelligible typos and all- that told him the group were on their way to drop Alex home, so he’d decided to wait up and make sure he didn’t kill himself with a spatula while he was asleep.

He couldn’t help mulling over what John had said- he’d been asking about what Alex’s type was. That didn’t make any sense, since Alex wasn’t in any sense _single_ \- perhaps it was one of John’s pranks? They had never really been on the same wave-length, humour-wise, so Aaron decided he probably wouldn’t be surprised if there was some big joke that he was missing. But why had he called Aaron Alex’s ‘best friend’? What was up with that? Okay, he could kind of see the joke there- since _John_ was actually Alexander’s best friend, but it still confused the hell out of him. In the end, he resolved to simply forget about it. After all, he had long ago accepted that he would never understand Alexander’s friends.

He went back to his book, losing himself in the story- it was “If on a winter’s night a traveller”, and he’d read it before a hundred times, but all that meant was that he found comfort in it. The novel was worn, pages glued back in in places, the spine split. It was one of his favourites. Letting the words wash over him, he lay, content, with only the dim light from the kitchen to illuminate the words, nothing but the sound of his own breathing to disturb him. There was only one thing missing…

A knock at the door made him look up, and the badly stifled laughter outside told him exactly who his visitors were. As he made his way to the door, he noticed that the clock read barely past one- they were only a half hour later than they’d promised. A new record.

When he pulled open the door, took a cursory glance at the three giggling men and Laf propping Laurens up on their arm, Alex stumbled in quickly and made straight for the couch. He nodded understandingly to Lafayette, watching them try to steer Hercules in the other direction.  
“Be safe.” he called. Lafayette smiled wearily.

“Thank you, Monsieur.”

Aaron closed the door quietly, then made his way over to where Alexander was now slumped. He rested his hand on the man’s shoulder, making Alex look up, and pressed a quick kiss to his forehead as he sat down.

“Hey babe, you have a good time?” Alexander nodded, grinning.

“It was _great._ ” His voice was pretty slurred, his eyelids drooping- time for bed, then. Aaron took his hands and started to pull him to his feet, but Alexander tugged him back down and lay so that Burr was on top of him, running his hands up his arms. Aaron really shouldn’t have been surprised. This was _Alexander_ , after all, and he was always a bit of a sleazy drunk.

“ _Alex._ ” he murmured as Alexander wrapped his arms around his neck. “This is _not_ the time, you’re-” but he cut himself off with a moan as Alex leaned up and started nipping at his collarbone. Little shivers kept shooting down his spine with every kiss, every bite, and _oh,_ he was digging his fingernails into his back and- Aaron pushed himself away, eyeing Alexander reproachfully.

“No _._ ” he said. He made sure his voice was firm, fighting to resist Alexander’s wandering fingers and climbing off the couch.

“Oh, come on.” Alex whined, reaching out his hands for him, but Aaron moved out of his reach.

“ _No_ , it’s past one in the morning and we both have early classes.”

“But-”

“No.”

Alex folded his arms as he sat up, sticking out his bottom lip in a pout.

“You’re mean.” he grumbled. “I come home to a sexy shirtless husband and I’m not even allowed to make out with him?”  
“I’m pretty sure you had a little more than making out on your mind, Alex.” Burr chided. “You know how I feel about this sort of thing.”

“We’ve had drunk sex _before_ …”

“Yeah, when we were _both_ drunk and my judgement was impeded. Both sober or both drunk- that’s my rule, remember?”

“Yeah, yeah, fine.” He scowled, then sighed and stood up. “At least come cuddle with me?” Aaron chuckled.

“It’s my bed too, Alexander, it’s not like you could stop me.”

They made their way to the bedroom, Alex pulling on pyjama pants but also foregoing a shirt. Aaron crawled into bed and Alex followed; he buried his face into Burr’s chest and wrapped his arms around his waist. Aaron sighed, running his fingers through his hair, and placed a kiss on the top of his head.

“I love you.” he whispered. There was no reply. Alex was already asleep.

 

***

 

It was Friday at last, and John Laurens was Ready. He had everything planned, the whole thing set up so that Alex and his potential date _couldn’t_ fail to hit it off. She was a colleague of Lafayette’s- a girl called Maria: absolutely beautiful, fiercely intelligent, single and looking for a long-term partner. Biphobia wouldn’t be an issue, since she was bi herself, and he’d talked to her about some political stances and found that she agreed with Alexander on most things. It was pretty much perfect. He and Herc picked Alex up from his apartment and walked to the club, meeting Laf on the way, all of them feeling far more optimistic than they’d thought they would be about their first potential date for Alex. They had told her to get there a little early, and pretend she didn’t know they were coming. The plan was just to introduce her as “oh, hey, it’s Laf’s friend from work!” and let things go from there- they could talk and see what happened, no pressure. It was the perfect plan. There was no way it wouldn’t work.

-

It wasn’t working. John was getting steadily more and more frustrated, watching as Alex and Maria talked. It wasn’t that Alex didn’t _like_ her, they were getting along great, it was just that he didn’t seem to notice that she was flirting. Every simpering remark was laughed off and met with a joke or a change of subject- she left multiple openings for him to drop in a flirty or suggestive remark, but he managed to miss every single one of them. It was infuriating. Looking around, he saw that his expression was mirrored on both Herc and Lafayette’s faces. Herc jerked his head at Alex, who was laughing at a joke Maria had made, and rolled his eyes. John sighed. Oh well, better luck next time.

When Alex left to use the bathroom, Maria gave them all an apologetic smile.

“Doesn’t look like it’s working, guys- I’m sorry.”

“Non, _we_ are sorry, Mademoiselle.” Laf shook their head, making their hair bounce. “We have wasted your time.”  
“Yeah, real sorry about that.” Herc added. Maria shrugged.

“No, it was cool talking to you- and Alex, he seems like a great guy! I think we could be good friends, I just don’t think we’d really work like as a couple.”

“Yeah… thanks for trying, though.” She smiled.

“No problem. I- uh- I’m going to head off now, if that’s alright with you? I have somewhere to be.”

“Oh, yeah, yeah, of course, don’t let us keep you.” The three of them waved as she left, then looked around at each other and sighed.

“Well, it’s only our first try.” Hercules pointed out. “We can just find someone else, right? I mean, we shouldn’t have expected him to fall for the first person we introduced him to, should we?”

“I guess not.”

“Hey, guys, where’s Maria?” Alex was back.

“Her ride got here.”

“Oh, cool.” Alex looked around at them, then smiled. “Ok, who wants drinks?” All three gave him their orders and he crossed the room to the bar, returning shortly after with three glasses and handing them out.

“You don’t always have to be designated driver, Alex- why don’t I do it for a change?” Herc said. He tried to pass his drink to him, but Alex shook his head, pushing it away.

“I just don’t get drunk on Fridays, guys, remember? You can get as hammered as you like.” John shrugged.

“Works for me.” He raised his glass, and the other two followed. “To Alex’s weird-ass drinking habits?”

“To Alex’s weird-ass drinking habits.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaand it's up! I didn't expect this to take so long- my first oneshot and it's already at least a three-shot... Oh well, hope you enjoyed!  
> If I misgendered Lafayette at any point, please let me know- and just comment in general, if you can! I love hearing what you guys have to say!  
> See you in the next update!


	3. Part three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Last part of "To the groom"  
> Smooching, lazy days, self-indulgent HamBurr cuteness and not much actual story sorry. But it was fun to write! :)  
> You all know what's going to happen. Have fun

Aaron’s arms were warm around Alexander’s waist as he buried his nose further into his chest with something close to a purr. He felt his husband’s chest vibrate with a chuckle, and smiled into the thin fabric of his tank top when he felt a warm kiss pressed to his forehead.

“G’morning.” Aaron murmured sleepily, his voice low and gravelly with sleep. Alex would _never_ get used to that voice- the way it made his chest flutter and his heart warm.

“Morning.” he mumbled back. He raised his head and pulled back a little to look his husband in the face. Aaron was smiling contentedly, eyes half-closed as he gazed down at the man curled against his body, that love-struck look that used to make Alex blush and avert his eyes now bringing a similar smile to his own face. Alex leaned up and kissed him softly, feeling the slow smile against his lips, he was so _warm_ \- and Aaron responded lazily, slipping his tongue into Alex’s mouth with practiced ease. After a minute, he pulled back and kissed his forehead again. Alex sighed, shifting slightly as if to get up, but Aaron put a hand on his chest to stop him.

“You were out late last night, stay here.” he said, moving the hand up to trail through his hair. Alex leaned into the touch contentedly.

“M’kay.” Aaron smiled and kissed him again, more gently still, before sitting up and climbing out of bed, saying

“Breakfast?”

“Mmh.” Alex curled in on himself, turning over, watching as Aaron pulled on his dressing gown and padded to the kitchen, and smiled into his pillow.

 _This_ was why Alexander didn’t get drunk on Fridays. It was the only evidence that he even had the ability to think ahead- nights of rowdy laughter and music that would be forgotten come morning were not worth giving his Saturdays up. Saturdays were their quiet days. Aaron didn’t have work, neither had class, and they put away any homework they had to do for another time. It was a system they’d established very early on, almost as soon as they had moved in together. It had been Aaron’s idea, of course- Aaron always had the best ideas. After finding that Alexander had a tendency to work himself to death if left to his own devices, but also that he could not be persuaded into a regular sleeping pattern, he had proposed the idea of what was now their weekly routine. Alex could work as much as he liked on any other day: pull all-nighters, lock himself in his study, bury himself in papers- but on Saturdays, he had to put it all away. No obligations, no expectations, except that he would allow himself to relax. In turn, Aaron would not answer his work phone, preventing any three-hour phone-calls that he insisted were ‘urgent business’, and they would spend the day in each other’s company.

Alex lay with his head on his arms, bundled in blankets, and listened to the sound of Aaron making breakfast. He sung while he did it, his smooth voice carrying through the apartment easily. Content to simply lie there, Alex closed his eyes and let the sound wash over him. No, nothing was worth giving this up.

After a little while, he heard the stove being turned off, and then footsteps coming towards the room, and looked up as Aaron entered.

“Hey babe, you want to come to the sitting room?”

“Mmh hmm”

“You going to walk?”

“Mmm”

Alex pouted and held out his arms, and Aaron rolled his eyes fondly. He picked him up easily, bridal style, and carried him through the hall to the sitting room, setting him down on the couch without much of a bump. He then went back to the kitchen, returning with a plate of pancakes, which he set on the coffee table.

“Pancakes, again?” Alex fake-whined, wrinkling his nose.

“Well, I can always take them away, if you don’t want them.” Aaron countered evenly. He reached to pick the plate back up, but Alex swatted his hand away.

“I suppose they’ll do.”

Aaron snorted and kissed the side of his head as he started cutting up a pancake, then slumped onto the sofa himself and leaned his head on his shoulder.

“You goof.”

“You love me.”

“I love you.”

Aaron ran his fingers through Alex’s hair again, murmuring the last words into his scalp. Alex couldn’t keep the grin off his face.

“Who’s the goof now?”

“Yeah, yeah.” Aaron rolled his eyes and took the hand out of his hair, then scooted backwards so he could lie down with his head on Alex’s knee. “You want to watch something dumb?”

“Yeah.”

He pulled up Netflix and, after a considerable amount of debate- _It’s_ _fucking_ June _, Allie!-_ Alexander managed to coax him into watching Elf. Occasionally, Alex reached down and fed Aaron a piece of his pancake, never mind that he dripped syrup on his legs. He ran his fingers over his husband’s scalp, rubbing small circles that made him sigh and settle even further into his lap.

“Just so you know, if you had hair, I would totally be playing with it right now.” he said quietly. Aaron chuckled.

“That’s good to know, thanks.”

“Just keeping you informed.”

They spent the day like that, flicking through rom-coms and appallingly bad action films- laughing until their stomachs were sore over the special effects.

“Would you still love me if I looked like that?” Alex asked at one point, pointing to a grotesque and rather unnerving CG alien on the screen.

“You _do_ look like that, Alexander.” Aaron mumbled.

“Oh, fuck you.”

“Maybe later.”

“Smooth.”

At around three, Laurens called, and Alex answered it to make sure John didn’t panic and think he was dead again.

“Alex, are you free tonight?”

“No, sorry, I’m busy.”

“Aw, man- doing what?”

“Nothing.”

“If you’re not doing anything, how can you-”

“I’m doing nothing, John, and it’s very important. Bye!” Before John could answer, he’d hung up.

“Smooth.” Aaron commented from where he was lying.

“I always am.” Alex crawled across the couch and kissed him, tasting mint in his mouth. “When did you get more humbugs?”

“Yesterday, I went to the store.” He pecked his lips- once, twice, smiling into it.

“You always taste like them.” Aaron shrugged.

“I’m sure there are worse things.”

“Wasn’t a complaint. Bet I taste gross.”

“You taste like coffee, Alex. Always.”

“We’re disgusting, aren’t we?”

“Absolutely.”

“Oh, god, we’re totally _that_ couple, aren’t we? Better be glad you’re not big on PDA, or our friends would have killed us by now.” Alex said, laughing. Aaron looked at him with a little confusion.

“Not big on PDA?”

“Well, yeah. You know- we talked about it and stuff; it always really bugged you when I was sappy in public.”

“Yeah, when we were _first dating,_ Alex.” Aaron said. He sat up a little straighter. “Because I was young, barely out, and worried about the security of our relationship. It’s not like that’s exactly an issue now… Are you telling me you’ve been refraining from touching me in public because of one conversation we had about…” he paused, counting on his fingers. “...seven years ago?” Alex blushed, a little sheepish.

“Well… yeah?” Aaron stared for a second, then laughed.

“Goof.” He kissed him again, chuckling softly.

“Yeah, but I’m _your_ goof.”

“God, we really _are_ that couple.” Aaron shook his head, apparently at a loss in the face of their cheesiness. Alex snorted and curled into his chest. He was warm, as always. “You want to order pizza?”

“Please”

 

-

 

Over the next ten days or so, the gang introduced Alex to more than fifteen people, sometimes more than one at a time, in as many different situations and circumstances as they could think of. Nothing. Girls, guys, people who were both, or neither, people who reminded them of Alex, one who was essentially his polar opposite (“You know, opposites attract, right?” “That’s magnets, John.”). That had been a memorable evening. The most promising encounter had been with Hercules’ cousin, James. The two had begun talking easily, and actually disappeared together at one point- but their hopes about the connotations of that were shattered when they found them animatedly discussing politics in a corner by the bar. They were close to giving up.

“You know, guys, I’m starting to think it’s a lost cause.” Herc was saying, his needles working as he knitted. “The guy’s oblivious. We could shove him in a closet, naked, with the hottest person on the planet, and he still wouldn’t get the gist.”

“I think I may agree, John.” Lafayette said wearily. “We have tried every tactic known to man, and for what? Nothing!”

“Alright, alright, but just one more?” John asked. Herc groaned, but John persisted- “Come on- one more- I already had someone in mind!”

“Of course you did…” Herc shook his head. “Who is it?”

“My co-worker, Angelica, has a younger sister.” John told him quickly. “She’s been single for ages, and wants to find a partner- I think it’s worth a shot.”

“Hmm.” Lafayette seemed unconvinced. “What is she like, this sister?”

“I’m- uh- not sure, but I can ask Angie! Today- I’ll tell her about it, and we’ll see. Please?” Hercules and Lafayette glanced at each other, then back at John’s puppy-eyes.

“Fine.”

 

-

 

That day, at work, John caught up with Angelica in the lunch room to find her on the phone. She held up a finger to tell him to wait, and he sat, swinging his legs, until she had finished.

“Bye, Peggy! Love you!” she said, blowing a kiss down the phone.

“Your sister?”

“Yeah, she calls a lot.” Angelica shrugged. “What was it you wanted?”

“Well, speaking of your sisters…” John began, rather proud of that segway, “You mentioned that Eliza was looking for a partner?”

“Yes? Where is this going?”

“I have a friend, Alex, and me and the gang have been trying to find a date for him.” John said simply. “I thought it might be worth introducing them.” Angelica seemed to be considering it.

“What’s he like, this ‘Alex’?”

“He’s really great, _obviously_ , or I wouldn’t be suggesting it.” John told her. “Pretty flawless moral code, most of the time, and he’s crazy smart. He talks a mile a minute, but you learn to love it. What about Eliza?”

“Oh, she’s perfect.” Angelica said, dismissively. “Sweetest, kindest person you’ll meet, hands down.”

“Well then,” John beamed. “Are you two free tomorrow night?”

“Why both of us?”

“We’ll need you to introduce her- and you can be as obvious as you like. We’ve tried subtle, and it didn’t work.” Angelica chuckled.

“Alright. Sounds like a plan.”  
“Really?” John hadn’t expected Angelica to agree this quickly- the girl was fiercely protective of her sisters.  
“Yes, really.”

“You sure? Because I’ve got a whole speech about Alex prepared- with direct quotes and sited sources and everything.”

“Oh, I think I can survive without it.” she assured him. Then she glanced up at the clock, and gave him a smile. “We’ll see you then, then- where do you want to meet?”

“ _The Place to Be,_ on Liberty street. Best joint in town- and it’s pretty quiet: no rowdy idiots.”

“You mean besides you and your friends?”

“Oh, ha ha. You’ll be there?”

“We’ll be there.” She waved and left, taking her bag with her.

Grinning, John pulled out his phone and set a quick text to Lafayette and Herc: ‘ _Operation Eliza is go!’_ One last try- and he had a good feeling about this one. They could only hope for the best.

 

-

 

The next evening, Alexander was doing his best to comb his hair in the bathroom mirror. It had twisted itself into a complete birds’ next under his beanie, and he muttered curse after curse under his breath, threatening to shave his head like Aaron if it didn’t co-operate. Aaron himself was finishing some work in the living room, an assignment for his class that he’d put off in favour of taking Alex to a museum the day before. Alex could hear the keys clacking, slowly- Aaron never rushed his work, and he only said what needed to be said. Unlike Alexander, who could ramble for pages before he even reached his first actual point.

Eventually, having persuaded his hair into some semblance of a ponytail, he went through to Aaron, saying “How do I look?”

“Beautiful.” his husband replied, without looking up.

“Thanks.”

Aaron was popping a humbug into his mouth- the hard sweets were his favourite- and Alex tapped him on the shoulder, holding out his hand for one. Shaking his head, Aaron showed him the empty bag and shrugged apologetically, dropping it into the bin.

“Sorry, last one.”

“Why must you hate me?”

“Should have got here sooner.”

Alex pouted, annoyed. Aaron pouted right back at him, mockingly, sucking on the candy, but held out his arms, inviting Alex to join him on the couch. Alex obliged with only a small eye-roll and fell comfortably into his arms; he fitted perfectly into the curve of Aaron’s chest, and the man rested his chin on his shoulder.

“Sorry, babe.” he said. “I’ll buy more when I go to the store later.”

“Yeah, it’s fine.”

They sat like that for a few minutes, until the doorbell rang.

“That’ll be the gang?” Aaron asked him.

“Probably, I’ll go see.” Alex stood and walked to the door, pulling it open to reveal a stooped old man with a package clutched in his hands. “It’s the mailman, babe.” he called through to Aaron, to let him know he wasn’t leaving. He signed the form that the man shoved at him, took the parcel and lay it down next to the stairs.

He went back to the sitting room and sat down next to Aaron, who was rolling the humbug between his teeth as he leafed through the textbook that had been lying on the coffee table next to him. Slowly, an idea formed in Alex’s mind. He leaned across the couch and kissed Aaron softly, lacing their fingers together. Aaron responded easily, kissing him long and lazy, not trying to deepen it; just feeling the comfort of their lips against each other seemed to be enough for him. Alexander had other ideas. Soon, he was tilting his head back, changing the angle of their mouths so that Burr moaned when he flicked his tongue against his lips. He let his mouth fall open, humming contentedly as Aaron responded in turn, moving his hand from the couch to the small of Alex’s back and tracing slow lines there, and he murmured Aaron’s name when his teeth sunk into his lip. This spurred Aaron on, and he began to push gently on Alex’s chest, but Alex shifted slightly and leaned into  _him_ instead, punctuating the movement with a swipe of his tongue that had Aaron gasping, and he quickly got the message. He fell back against the cushions, Alex bracing his hands either side of his head and exploring his mouth with his tongue, pulling back to graze his teeth across his lips occasionally, then diving back in and practically sticking his tongue down Aaron’s throat. Before long, the man under him was moaning, scrabbling for a hold on the front of Alex’s shirt and kissing him back fiercely, and then-

Alex pulled away, triumphant. He slid off the couch, meeting Aaron’s confused, dishevelled gaze with a mischievous one of his own, and grinned broadly to show the humbug held between his teeth.

“ _Alex!_ ” Aaron groaned, and launched himself at his now laughing husband, grabbing his sides and starting to tickle him as he pulled him back onto the couch. Alex yelped and struggled to escape, squirming and giggling under Aaron’s fingers

“Aaron- st- stop- I’m sorry!- I’ll- I- ah- _please- Aaron!_ ” Aaron would not be moved, however, and only tickled him harder, wrapping his legs around him so he couldn’t escape.

“You absolute _motherf-_ ”

The doorbell rang.

Alex kicked out and managed to extricate himself, darting away from Aaron’s grabbing arms and grabbing his bag as he headed for the door.

“Sorry, babe, but I’ve got to run!” he called, a sweet smile on his face. Aaron glared and jabbed a finger at him.

“You will _pay_ for this.”

Alex only laughed and ran back to kiss him on the cheek.

“You’ll come join us when you’re done, right?” he asked. Aaron hesitated.

“I don’t know…”

“Aww, please? You _never_ hang out with us.”

“I wonder why.”

“Oh, come on, they’re not _that_ bad.” Aaron raised his eyebrows, but melted in the face of Alex’s pleading gaze.

“Oh, fine, fine. See you later.”

“See you later.” Alex beamed, pecked his lips once, then headed out.

“Now _you_ taste like mint.” Aaron observed. Alex winked.

“It’ll remind me of you.” Aaron mimed retching over his laptop as he settled back on the sofa.

“ _Goodbye,_ Alexander.”

“Bye.”

He blew a kiss, and went to the door. John was standing outside, impatiently drumming on the frame, and grinned when it opened.

“Took you long enough.”

“Sorry.”

“Nah, it’s cool. You up for the best night of your life?” He slung his arm around Alex’s shoulders as they made for Lafayette’s car.

“What’s the occasion?”

“You being the best friend ever, _duh_ ”

“Well, I can’t disagree with that.”

The journey to _The Place to Be_ was predictable enough- Laf and Herc squabbled and teased each other, John disgusted them all with his innuendos- ( _For someone who’s sex-repulsed, you know a lot of  sexual jokes, Laurens_ ), but when they reached the bar, the atmosphere changed slightly. Alex wasn’t sure why, but his friends seemed sort of… nervous. As they approached the bar, John waved to a woman standing there- who waved back, her curls bouncing.

“John, hi!”

“Angelica!” They hugged, and Alex gave her a hesitant smile. He’d heard a lot about this _‘Angelica’_ from John, and he was a little worried about meeting her. Perhaps that was why John hadn’t mentioned that she’d be there- she seemed to have been waiting for them.

“Hercules, Lafayette-” she said, shaking their hands, before turning to him. “-and you must be Alex.”

“Yeah, hi! It’s good to meet you.” he said. Angelica’s smile seemed a little _too_ warm, for some reason, and she was looking at him very closely, as if she was examining him. It made the back of his neck prickle.

“You too.” She exchanged a look with John, and shook her head almost imperceptibly. _What was going on?_

“I’ll order a couple of drinks.” John said, and left to buy them.

“So, Alex.” Angelica began, smiling at him again. “What do you study?”

There followed maybe fifteen minutes of what he could only describe as an interrogation. Angelica wanted to know practically everything about him- where he went to college, what classes he took, what he was planning to do in the future, why, his political views, his stance on racism, sexism, gender identity, whether or not he could cook- Alex felt that _she_ was doing most of the talking. Eventually, she seemed to make a decision.

“There’s someone I’d like you to meet.” she told him, taking his arm.

“Okay…”

Alex let himself be led through the crowd of customers, listening to Angelica as she talked even faster than before.

“My sister, Eliza, she’s the most wonderful person- I’m sure you’ll get along great! She was just saying, you know, the other day, how much she admired law students- she’s an English major herself, wants to be a teacher- that’s not a problem, is it?- and I suppose that it would be boring if you were absolutely the same, don’t you think- no topic of conversation; she’s just _so_ excited to meet you! She’s been single for ages, and when I told her- ”

_Oh. Angelica was trying to set him up. Hadn’t John warned her he was unavailable?_

“Uh- Angelica?” he said, pulling her to a halt. She stopped next to him and looked round at him expectantly, stopping her tirade for a second.

“Yeah?”

“I’m- I’m married, so...”

The look on her face was completely blank, as if she hadn’t quite processed what he had said.

“I’m sorry, what?”

“I’m _married_ , Angelica. Wed. Hitched. _Taken_."

It takes a few seconds. Then-

“Oh my god.” Her expression changed from shock, to guilt, and then to… anger? Why would she…?

Oh, Angelica was furious alright, gritting her teeth before turning and marching right back to where his friends were standing, dragging Alexander by the arm. He felt himself begin to panic, what had gotten into her? Sure, she’d thought she had a date for her sister, but wasn’t this a bit of an overreaction? He was about to ask her, but she spoke first. Or rather, she _acted_ first.

Angelica stalked up to John, looked him in the eye, and slapped him, hard, across the face. He stumbled backwards in shock as Laf gaped and Herc took a step forward, shouting-

“Hey, what the hell are y-”

“What the _fuck,_ Laurens!?” Angelica yelled, fury making her voice shrill. John stuttered for a reply, rubbing his jaw, but she cut him off. “What the _actual fuck_ do you think you’re doing, trying to set up a date for a married guy!?”

“A married- _what_?” the trio looked from Angelica, to Alex, and back- total incomprehension on their faces.

“Alexander, I sincerely hope you had no part in this, and I would advise you to find a new group of friends.” Angelica snarled, before she grabbed her bag from the stool and marched over to where a young woman was standing- presumably the sister she’d been taking him to meet. She took her by the arm and pulled her away, much as she had just done to Alex, muttering under her breath in her rage. The girl stared wide-eyed at the others as they passed and burst out of the doors, and the group stared after her, equally dumbfounded.

“Alex…” Herc muttered, shock numbing his voice, “Why did you-?”

“I think I would have to agree with Angelica.” Alex snapped, silencing him as he turned back to face them. “What the _fuck,_ guys? Why the fuck were you trying to set me up with her sister?”

“Why did _you_ tell her you were married?” John retorted, voice rising. “I mean that’s one hell of a way to get out of a date, but seriously, man what-”

“Um, maybe because I _am married!?_ ” Alex yelled back “What the- are you telling me you’ve been trying to set me up this whole time? All those people you introduced me to, was that-?”

“Wait, you’re _married?_ ” Herc yelped.

“ _Yes!_ ”

There was a pause.

Alex’s mind was spinning. _What the fuck? They hadn’t known- they had thought he was single? This whole time? What had they done- just forgotten Aaron existed? Or had they thought that the man he spent the majority of his time with, talked about and to constantly, and shared a one-bedroom apartment with was just a close friend?_

He looked around at their dumb-struck expressions, practically able to _hear_ the gears whirring in their heads as they processed the information. It was John who broke the silence.

“Wait… so who’s your-”

“Alexander!” A wonderfully familiar voice made John stop, and Alex turn towards the door. A peculiar cocktail of emotions surged through him as his eyes fell on Aaron, dressed in a smart dress-shirt, and smiling politely at the group as he made his way over. God, it just couldn’t get any weirder, could it?

He hurried over to Aaron, stopping him before he was half way to the bar by putting a hand on his chest and looking up at him with something akin to panic. Aaron’s hand went familiarly to his waist, but he returned his gaze with confusion.

“Alex? What is it? You look like you’ve seen a ghost…” Alex swallowed, trying to get his thoughts together. He felt slightly delirious.

“They- uh- they-” he whispered, so the others wouldn’t hear, and bit back an unhinged sort of giggle at the absurdity of it, “The gang only just found out that I’m married. Or even… involved with anyone at all.”

There was a beat, before Aaron’s eyes widened incredulously, and he looked over to where the trio was standing. John, Herc and Lafayette were now staring at the pair curiously, realisation creeping slowly over their faces. He looked back to Alex, disbelieving.

“Really?”

Alex nodded. Aaron bit his lip, looking away from him, and Alex felt his stomach drop- was he offended? Did he think Alex had tried to _hide_ their relationship? What if he– But, looking more closely at his face, Alex realised quite suddenly that Aaron was trying not to _laugh_.

“They- they really-?” he spluttered, letting slip a snort that he hid behind his hand. “Oh, god, Alexander, that’s- that’s _priceless._ ”

He began to laugh in earnest then, dropping his head onto Alex’s shoulder, and if he hadn’t been extremely put out, Alex would definitely have been _basking_ in that moment. He heard Aaron laugh like that so rarely- but he couldn’t help the indignant tone in his voice as he replied.

“T- They’ve been trying to set me up with people- _Aaron, this isn’t funny!_ ” His own voice started to tremor then, meeting Aaron’s eyes as his husband giggled helplessly, growing breathless. “Damnit, Aaron, this is _serious-_ this-” but then Aaron snorted louder still and he was gone. He buried his face into Aaron’s neck, cracking up helplessly, the pair of them growing slightly hysterical as they clutched each other for support, sniggering and spluttering like little children. Their knees started to give out, and they stumbled to the bar, almost _howling._ Eventually, his stomach beginning to hurt, Alex pulled back, holding Aaron’s shoulders and trying to choke out a sentence over his now wheezing laughter.

“Wait- A- Aaron, we have to- ssssh-ssh- calm down- we- we should-” He met Aaron’s eyes and doubled over again. It was ridiculous. The whole thing was ridiculous. He had been married for over three years- since before he even _met_ any of his three best friends, and _none of them had even noticed._

After a little while, Aaron was the one get himself under control.

“Ok- we- we need to stop” he stammered, biting his lip hard and fighting the smile off his face.

“R-Right. Very serious.” Alex took a deep breath, swallowed, and looked over along the bar. His friends were staring more attentively than ever, looking completely lost at the couple’s laughing fit.

“ _How_ did they not notice?” Aaron wondered quietly, gaze following Alex’s to the group.

“Well, we don’t have rings, so I guess…”

“We could still have been _dating_.” he pointed out. “Come on, we live together, we spend all our time together- hell, _they're_ the ones that say we bicker like an old married couple-”

“I mean…” Alex started, but hesitated, not wanting to come off the wrong way. “We don’t exactly, you know…” Aaron raised an eyebrow.

“You know… what?”

“Well, there’s not a lot of PDA, with us, is there? Not that that’s a problem!” He added hurriedly. “It’s just we don’t really act, you know, couple-y- in public, I mean. And I don’t mind that, but you can see how they might think… how they might not-”

“Alexander, calm down. I’m not offended.” Aaron shook his head fondly. “We’ve been through all of that before, remember?”

“Yeah, yeah- I know, but I just thought-.”

“And I told you I’d be comfortable with being more affectionate, since we’re, you know, _married_ and everything?”

“I- yeah. I just…” He looked down, conscious of how what he was about to say could be interpreted. “-but I got used to… not doing that. Not being like that with you in pubic. I don’t mean I don’t want to- I just stopped thinking about it after we talked. You know, the first time. When we were, like, twelve.” Aaron snorted again at that.

“We were not twelve, Alexander, we were at least sixteen.” Alex pushed his shoulder lightly, still keeping his voice down, acutely aware of the three sets of ears that were trained on them.

“You know what I mean. That’s just how our relationship always was, you know? Cuddly in private, friendly in public.” He looked at his feet, waiting for Aaron’s response. Now was really not the time to be having this conversation, but he’d said it, and there was no taking it back.

“We could always… change that…” Aaron murmured, his voice low. Alex looked up at him, surprised, and was caught off-guard by how intently he was staring at him. He glanced at the group, then back to Alex, leaning in closer as he seemed to make a decision. His eyes were dark, his face far closer to Alex’s than necessary, his breath- that familiar coffee-and-peppermint smell- ghosting across his lips. Already leaning on the bar, Aaron moved around to pin him there, arms either side of his waist, forehead barely brushing his. Alex felt his stomach flip at the proximity, his breath hitching as Aaron fixed him with a stare he recognised immediately, but that was generally reserved for a more _private_ situation.

“W-Will y- would you-?” Alex managed to stammer, his throat suddenly dry, knees unstable once more. Aaron quirked an eyebrow.

“Will I _what?_ What do you want, Alexander?” There was a smirk behind his words, and for a second Alex was back in high school, Aaron straddling him on the couch at his dorm, mouthing at his neck and chest until Alexander begged for it, making him keen and whimper, trailing light fingers up the insides of his thighs- barely even touching, just enough to set his skin on fire- and asking over and over- _What do you want, Alexander? I don’t know what you want if you don’t tell me- what is it that you want?-_ knowing full well that he couldn’t answer.

Speechless, as he had been then, Alex took a shaking breath and closed the distance himself, pressing his lips to Aaron’s. He kissed him softly, unsure of whether this was really what he meant- but Aaron deepened it quickly, leaning closer still so that their chests brushed against each other. He hummed against Alex’s mouth, swiping his tongue along his bottom lip in a way that made his mouth fall open with a groan. He felt Aaron smile and reached up to grip the fabric of his shirt, kissing him back lazily, letting himself get lost in the familiarity of it. Never mind that his friends were watching, mouths agape, and that he’d never so much as held Aaron’s hand in front of them. In fact, that spurred him on a little. They’d thought he was single? This, at least, should prove them wrong. He ran his own tongue along the back of Aaron’s teeth, knowing exactly what that would do to him, and was not disappointed when he let out a low moan and gripped Alex’s hair with one hand, the other still keeping him balanced against the bar. It was his turn to smile. He ran his hands down Aaron’s chest slowly, letting them rest at his hips and circling his thumbs a little on his hipbones because he _knew_ it drove him crazy. Aaron gasped and pulled back a little, just enough that their lips weren’t quite touching, and Alex barely held back a whine at the loss of contact.

“So we’re playing like _that?_ ” Aaron murmured, his voice gravelly, before kissing him again, painfully light, and Alex positively _whimpered_ when the man tugged at his hair, bucking his hips up in search of some kind of friction- something he was denied when Aaron pulled away with a sly smile and pecked him chastely on the cheek before turning away.

Alexander stood, completely frozen, and stared after his husband. He was thoroughly shaken, his hair falling into his eyes, his cheeks flushed, breathing laboured; he knew he looked a _mess._ Aaron, on the other hand, seemed almost completely unaffected as he strode quickly to the three gaping people at the end of the bar. Herc, Laf and John were standing exactly where he’d left them, stock-still, utterly shell-shocked. Their expressions were something out of a cartoon. Eyes popping, mouths hanging open, they mouthed wordlessly as Burr approached. Aaron held out his hand.

“It seems that we were never properly introduced.” he said, and Alex could just _tell_ that his eyes were twinkling. “My name is Aaron Burr. I’m Alexander’s husband.”

 

\- 

 

It was a story they told far too many times in years to come, and one they never tired of. Everyone tried to embellish it differently, though Aaron could usually be trusted to give the most accurate version- and all agreed that Herc’s was the most exciting. The Hamilton-Burrs made their surname double-barrelled, and made a point of making their relationship explicitly clear from the get-go, but not much else changed.

Saturdays were still quiet, and they lay curled around each other, listening to the hum of the traffic outside and each other’s breathing.

Aaron murmured something Alex couldn’t quite hear, and he craned his head around to look at his face- or his chin, at least.

“What was that?” Aaron rolled his eyes.

“I said: _I love you_.”

“I love you too.”

It was quiet, and it was more than enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoop! I finished it!  
> Please tell me what you thought- and what I should write next!

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! I LOVE U


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